


Into the great unknown

by spiteandmalice



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, Exile, Hurt/Comfort, Loss of Force Powers, M/M, Soft Kylux, Soft softness, farming au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:33:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23715982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiteandmalice/pseuds/spiteandmalice
Summary: It’s been five hundred days exactly since Hux last saw Kylo Ren.(An AU in which Hux survives and thrives on Arkanis, and Kylo Ren wakes up alone on the Death Star ruins, travels the universe and somehow still ends up on Arkanis.)
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Armitage Hux/Kylo Ren
Comments: 23
Kudos: 308





	Into the great unknown

**Author's Note:**

> I think we all agree that Arkanis is AU space Ireland. I’ve taken liberties with traditions based around the four seasons from the Celtic calendar.
> 
> I resisted writing an entire plant breeding AU. I’m proud of my restraint! This is what you get instead. 
> 
> I'm on Twitter @spiteandmalice, any fellow plant breeders hit me up and we'll write 10k of them checking basal leaf sheath hairs together and arguing over cold room space.

**Samhain (the start of winter)**

Something’s falling from the sky.

Hux puts his tray of seedlings on the ground, brushes the soil off his hands. He shields his eyes from the sun and squints. _Something’s_ definitely coming down, just over the east ridge that separates the village from the grasslands where the banthas graze. 

This is the most exciting thing that’s happened to him in… well, the entire time he’s been back on Arkanis. He’d chosen to live on one of the smaller islands, far from where his mother was born, far from the Academy, far from every memory of his childhood on this planet.

Yet the object falling from the sky brings up a memory unbidden of the tales Phasma had told Hux of her time with Brendol, tracking the wreck of his ship on Parnassos. Phasma had never been Hux’s friend, but a co-conspirator, a confidante sometimes, an ally, certainly. And as the old phrase said: ‘the enemy of my enemy in my friend’ and Brendol Hux had been a powerful enemy to them both. 

Hux has no friends here but he has acquaintances, a handful of people he trades with and some of his neighbours who always say hello to him when he meets them at the baths. 

One of those trade partners, Leera, is flying down the road on her speeder bike with a trailer attached and she slows down when she nears Hux’s house, coming to a stop in a dust cloud. 

“Hey, Armitage! Wanna come see what came down?” 

He looked towards the east ridge again, there’s a plume of smoke spiralling up. It’s more exciting than seedlings so he nods, climbs on the back of the speeder bike and hangs on. 

There’s two other people there when they arrive at the ridge, a gruff looking man with a huge beard that Hux’s seen around but has never spoken to, and Daraghe who runs the local engineering trade post. He’d bought and dismantled Hux’s First Order shuttle without saying a word about the origin of it, and paid Hux a reasonable price. 

He waves at Leera and nods at Hux. “I don’t know what came down, but I feel like I might be making some credits tonight!” 

The other man snorts. “It’s a small shuttle. I’ve been here all day, tending to these bantha. I saw it come down.”

Daraghe looks a little deflated, not getting the huge prize he’d wanted. “Is this your land?” 

The herdsman nods. Daraghe takes out a datapad and starts making calculations. Hux knows once he sees the wreck he’ll offer the man some money to take it off his hands. 

Leera revs her bike. “Let’s go see what we can find, eh?”

Leera’s looking for interesting cargo, Hux wants an interesting afternoon. Hux holds on tightly as she navigates the slope of the ridge until they reach the wreck, smoke thick on the air. The shuttle has shattered on impact, debris and cargo boxes strewn across the grass. Any crew would have died instantly. 

Leera jumps off the bike, cautiously opens the nearest box. It’s droid parts, nothing very valuable but there’s at least 200 in the box. She grins, happy and opens the next box to find more. 

Daraghe arrives at the site, nods once to himself and holo-calls his team. They’ll bring his small ship, load up the wreck to strip it back at the workshop. He seems pleased with the find, walks around the back of the wreck to appraise it further. 

Hux should have brought a bag, or his own speeder. There’s enough pieces here he would be able to afford an Agro-Droid if he could sell a few of these boxes.

Leera’s making a small pyramid with some boxes and she looks over at Hux. 

“Are you going to take some Armie?”

He shakes his head. “I didn’t bring anything to get them home.” 

She frowns. “Load them onto my speeder. Help me get them back and spilt and we can share them out. You’re better at haggling with the sellers than I am anyway.”

“Deal.”

It always amazes him at the easy way people here shared things, ensured everyone had something. 

Daraghe shouts out suddenly. “There’s someone alive here!”

Boxes forgotten, they run to the other side of the wreck. There’s a heap of dark material in one corner, but it’s definitely a person, face down on what was the cockpit. 

Daraghe holocalls his team again, tells them to start up their med-droid. 

“How do you know they’re alive-” Hux starts to say when the person groans.

Leera turns the person over, they’re covered in soot and blood but they hiss in pain as they’re moved, eyes scrunched shut.

Hux stares at the person in shock.

It’s...Kylo Ren.

It might not be _him_ , Hux reasons. His hair is longer than Hux has ever seen it and somehow his facial scarring is gone. It could be a relative. A brother. It’s been five hundred days exactly since Hux last saw Kylo Ren. He assumed he was dead.

Kylo opens his eyes and meets Hux’s and the shock there is clear. 

It _is_ Kylo. 

Daraghe’s team arrive, the medi-droid starts to scan Kylo. 

“What’s your name? How did you survive the crash?” Leera asks Kylo.

_‘The Force.’_ Hux thinks. _‘How he saved me, once.’_

Kylo ignores her in favour of staring at Hux and it’s making Hux nervous. Why is he here? Has he come for Hux?

The droid beeps twice and Daraghe pats it. 

“He’s okay, a little shocked with a lot of bruising. I have no idea how he survived. Should I evac him to a city for more checks, or bring him to the village to let him rest?”

“I’ll take him in.” Hux finds himself saying. Kylo looks startled.

Daraghe’s men bring a hover-stretcher and load Kylo onto it. He doesn’t protest, eyes drifting shut as they give him a sedative to help him rest.

“I’ll go back with Daraghe, I’m sorry I can’t help you haul the stuff back.” 

Leera waves him off. “I still need your negotiation skills for the auction. Go look after him.” 

The team leaves Kylo on Hux’s couch. It’s not the beautiful, sleek ice-blue piece he had requisitioned as a reward to himself for becoming General but a grey couch with slightly worn patches on the fabric. It was free and it’s comfortable. Hux is fine with it. 

Kylo seems fine with it too, snores so loudly he startles Millicent. Hux scoops her into his arms and scratches her under her chin. They both stare at Kylo. Hux rarely has visitors, perhaps Leera for the occasional discussion on pricing, but that’s it. Seeing Kylo’s black-clad bulk sprawled across the couch is bizarre.

“This whole situation is bizarre.” Hux murmurs to Millie and she trills back at him. 

\---

When Kylo opens his eyes the first thing he sees is a loth cat sitting on his chest. She’s fluffy and ginger with white streaks on her ears. She tilts her head curiously at him. 

“Hello?” He says to her.

She narrows her eyes and jumps off him.

“Ah, you’re awake.” Hux’s voice calls out.

“Am I dreaming?”

“Do you dream about crashing and waking up in my house often?” Hux walks over to the couch. He looks angry, both hands on his hips, glaring down at Kylo.

Kylo winces. The crash. Hux. It comes flooding back. His shuttle had been damaged, he was looking for a planet to land on and lost control…Since he’d lost his connection to the Force, flying was more difficult, the natural instinct to lean into the Force’s gentle guidance, gone. 

Kylo tries to sit up, hisses at the pain in his side. He’s confident his ribs are intact, but the bruising is going to be extensive.

Hux rolls his eyes, disappears from Kylo’s eye line for a moment and returns with a glass in one hand. 

“Here, take these painkillers. I’m not wasting my bacta on you.”

Kylo takes the offered glass and pills and swallows them. He hopes they work quickly.

“Aren’t you worried they’re poison?”

Kylo chokes on the water, coughs. “I wasn’t worried, no. You would have left me at the crash site if you wanted me dead.”

Hux sniffs. “Maybe I wanted to kill you myself.”

Kylo giins. “You’d have shot me, or stabbed me while I slept.”

Hux offers a slight grin back. “Fair enough.”

Kylo tries again, and manages to sit up. He looks around the house. It’s small, there’s the room he’s in now, with a small kitchen leading off it. There’s a staircase. 

And there’s that loth cat still staring at him. 

“Psssshssshssh.” Kylo whispers to the cat. The cat continues to stare at him. The expression of disdain reminds Kylo of Hux. 

“Psssshssshshhhhh.” The cat doesn’t move. “Your cat doesn’t like me.” Kylo grumbles.

The cat allows Hux to pick her up, purring loudly. Hux looks smug. 

“Millie doesn’t like anyone but me. Also you reek from the crash. That’s why she was interested a moment ago.” 

Now Hux points it out, Kylo can smell it too. The stink of burnt plast and soot. 

“Can I use your refresher?”

“I have a cold shower, or I can direct you to a hot, communal bath house where they have showers.”

Kylo lip curls in disgust. “A _communal_ bath house.”

“This island’s run on hydroelectricity, and the heat generated by the turbines is pumped into baths.”

Kylo blinks. “I’m on an island?”

“Yes. Wait, do you know what _planet_ you crashed on?”

Once, he’d have skimmed Hux’s mind, taken the information he needs. Now, cut off from the Force he feels blinded. 

“...no.” Kylo admits.

“We’re on Arkanis.”

Kylo mutters something under his breath.

“You’re welcome to leave.” Hux pretends to think. “Oh, wait, you crashed your ship, so you can’t. Tragic. Poor you.”

Kylo shoots him a dirty look. “I’ll take that communal bath now.”

Hux sighs. “I’ll get you a towel. And we’ll buy you some new clothes on the way.”

\---

Hux had been used to communal showering at the Academy, a quick, brief scrub every evening. Communal bathing here is a community thing, where people come and meet their neighbours, soak for a while before having to head back out into the cold. Hux had hated it at first, had been fine with the nudity, but talking to strangers? For the simple act of chat and connection? That had taken him some time to get used to. 

Kylo’s looking around as they enter the bath house. A few people look up from their conversations, some nod at Hux. Hux had brought a small bag with him, and he passes Kylo a bar of home-pressed soap from it. 

“We shower first, then we can take a bath.” 

“I don’t need to take a bath-”

Hux sighs. “I do. I need to relax. You can stand in the cold for all I care.” 

He pushes past Kylo towards the shower room and Kylo follows. Hux turns away quickly as Kylo begins to undress. He spent _years_ destroying his feelings for Kylo Ren, to rekindle them now would be madness. 

They’d kissed once. They’d argued about something and Kylo had tried to win by grabbing him and kissing. It’d been a good kiss- with Kylo’s hands gentle on Hux’s face, but ultimately Hux had pulled away, reclaimed his control over his traitorous body and told Kylo no.

He’d regretted it immediately, but put those feelings in the same little box in his mind that everything else like that resided: the loss of his mother or his childhood. Feelings only complicated things.

Hux undresses as well, curses his curiosity for ever bringing him to the crash site. A few hours ago he was planting seedlings, looking forward to spending an evening reading with Millicent on his lap. Now he’s in a bath house with _Kylo Ren_. 

Hux showers quickly, walks back to the bath room and starts to run a bath. The water flows quickly, milky and effervescent like always and he sighs happily. This is a ritual he does daily. This is normal. Routine. 

Each bath has a hot pipe running around it to keep it warm while you bathe, and a ledge to sit on.

Kylo appears next to him. Normalcy sadly destroyed, Hux gestures at the bath. “Get it if you want.” 

He looks away as Kylo climbs over the side and sinks into the water. He waits a moment until he looks up. What he can see of Kylo’s torso above the milky water is a lot slighter than Hux remembers it being, or at least had guessed it would be under the armour and layers of robes. He looks more like the Kylo that first joined the First Order, particularly with the longer, curling hair he’s currently got.

Hux drags his eyes away from Kylo, turns the water off and gets in too. 

Kylo lets out a groan, eyes drifting closed.

“I haven’t had a bath in years. I’d forgotten how _good_ it feels. It’s so _warm_. Do you come here often?”

“Every day.”

“Why do you come here so much?

Hux lowers his voice. “I was shot in the leg and it aches, every day. The hot water helps it a lot.”

Kylo’s eyes fly open. 

“I didn’t know.”

“You left to find the scavenger and you never returned.” He doesn’t want to sound as bitter as he does, since it’s been almost two years but he can’t help the anger and hurt that creeps into his words.

Hux doesn’t know why he’s telling Kylo these things. He’s been back in Hux’s life mere hours, and now they’re in a bath together, discussing the past? Hux wonders if maybe this was a dream. Or a bizarre series of hallucinations. Maybe he’d touched a poisonous plant and now the toxins were rotting his brain. 

“I’m sorry.” Kylo says softly.

Hux doesn’t respond.

Kylo stretches his arms along the side of the bath and Hux glimpses the bruising on his torso from the crash. He feels slightly guilty he didn’t put bacta on it. He scoffs to himself. Kylo deserves every bruise. Maybe this place has made Hux soft. Vulnerable. He needs to ensure that Kylo doesn’t take advantage of it. 

\---

Millie’s on the window ledge, yowling out at the world when Hux comes back. He’d forgotten to put her food out before they’d left.

“Sorry sorry sorry.” he mutters at her as she follows him into his little kitchen.

Kylo reaches down to pet her and she swishes her tail at him and jumps onto the counter to nuzzle Hux instead. 

“I need to feed Millie, can you pick some food for dinner please?”

Kylo nods, take the proffered basket and goes out the front door. 

He stares at the array of garden beds, the dozens of different leaves that poke out of the soil. He’s never done this before. Millions of people do it every day, on every world. He’ll be fine.

He confidently pulls one long green stem out of the ground. An onion appears out of the ground. Pleased, he puts it into the basket. 

He tries a thick dark green and purple leaf. There’s nothing in the ground. He drops the leaf, tries another one. Still nothing except a tangled mass of roots. 

There’s floppy bright green stems in the next bed. He carefully plucks them, places them flat in the basket. They look tasty. 

Finally he comes to a small green bush which he tugs it out of the ground. Tiny potatoes hang from the roots. He plucks a few off, discards the bush. They’re much smaller than he remembers. He has a vague idea they should be boiled. Maybe they swelled in size in the water. Kylo returns to the house, pleased. 

Hux is not pleased.

“You brought me a single onion, leaves from a carrot, and five tiny potatoes.” 

Kylo’s smile fades. Hux opens the kitchen door and flings the contents of the basket onto a compost heap angrily. He stomps around the side of the house, presumably to fetch real food.

Kylo sits nervously on the couch. He’s only here by Hux’s grace. He has no credits, no ship. He hears the kitchen door open again. Hux slams down the basket and glares at Kylo as he enters the kitchen.

“I’m sorry.” Kylo offers.

“Two apologies in one day from Kylo Ren. I’m blessed.” Hux spits out.

Kylo hovers in the doorway. 

“Make yourself useful, use the grinder to make some flour. Pour a scoop in, close the lid, press the button, put the flour in this bowl. I need four scoops. Can you do that?”

Kylo nods and goes silently to the machine. He picks up the little silver scoop and pours the grain into the machine, closes the lid. The sudden whirr of the machine makes him jump, but soon the grains have turned to cream coloured, powdery flour. He carefully pours it into the bowl, starts another batch grinding. 

He used to bake with Han sometimes. Corellia had a type of bread that Han swore was magic to the young Ben, that would make him grow big and strong. Looking back it was a basic bread recipe but spending that time with Han was where the real magic was. When they used to laugh at getting flour on their clothing, marvel at the chemical wonders of bubbling dough together. That first slice hot from the oven covered in butter was always a perfect moment. 

Kylo shakes the memories from his head, pours out the next batch of flour.

Hux puts the vegetables into the insta-oven with two large fish from the freezer that have already been filleted. 

He takes the flour from Kylo, adds oil and salt and a little water and he mixes it all together. He cuts small amounts of the dough, rolls them flat and presses them onto the pan on the stove. The dough immediately sears and the smell makes Kylo’s mouth water and his stomach rumbles loudly.

“When did you last eat?” Hux asks, flipping the dough.

“Two days? My ship was disabled a week ago, I was trying to land it when you found me.”

Hux passes the cooked bread to Kylo and he gobbles it down. 

“Where did you learn to cook Hux?”

“I’ll feed you but I’m not going to answer your questions. I owe you nothing Kylo.”

Kylo accepts another piece of bread, chastened. 

The insta-oven dings and Hux takes the food out, puts half into a bowl with more bread and pushes it towards Kylo. 

The silence is killing Kylo, despite spending most of the last few months completely alone.

“What do you do here? As a job?” he asks. 

“You never listened, and you still don’t!” Hux picks his bowl up and storms out of the room. Kylo can hear footsteps on the stairs.

The bread doesn’t taste as good when he cooks it.

\---

Kylo sleeps well on the couch, wakes up when the sun comes in the little window. He’s not been on a planet for a few weeks. He looks out at the sky, sees a bird fly past. There’s gentle rain falling. Millicent wanders into the room, jumps up and walks along the top of the couch trilling softly at him. He reaches a hand out and she snubs him again, jumps onto the nearby table instead. 

Hux makes them both caf and more bread for breakfast, slathered with some sort of sweet jam. 

“We need to plant some seedlings today when the rain stops.” Hux announces as he serves breakfast.

“I thought you’d be working with machines?” he asks.

“I thought I told you I didn’t want to answer any questions.” Hux bites viciously into his bread.

“Just one. Please.”

Hux chews for a moment, swallows. 

“I lost my taste for engineering after the loss of Starkiller.”

“Kuat Systems would take you. Their Rothana subsidiary is being re-formed I’ve heard.”

“I’m happy here.”

“Being what, a farmer? I don’t think so.” Kylo scoffs. 

“You don’t know me. You’ve never known me. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t toss you outside into the rain?”

“Because we were friends once?” Kylo offers.

“Friends? No. We worked together. Colleagues at best, rivals- certainly. We were never _friends_.” Hux sneers.

“Okay, maybe not friends, but we respected each other.”

Hux's face softens.

“We did, once.” He agrees. “Before Snoke and the Resistance ruined it.”

They’re both silent for a moment before Hux speaks.

“I’ve had a complicated life. I wanted something quiet for once. Plants are simple. You put them in the ground, and they grow. Then you get to sell them, or eat them. They don’t betray you, or lie to you. They only want the sun and the rain.”

“And what do you want?”

Hux sighs heavily. “I _didn’t_ want you to turn up and ruin this for me.”

“I'll work. I'll help.”

“The mighty Supreme Leader digging in the dirt every day? Pulling weeds? I don’t think so.”

“I can. I’ll listen, you can teach me.”

“Maybe if you use your powers to help. Because I rescued you I didn’t get a chance to take some boxes, I needed to sell them to afford an agri-droid.”

“...I don't have a connection to the Force anymore.” Kylo’s voice is small. He hasn’t said it out loud since he woke up on the Death Star ruins, soaked to the bone, alone in the universe and his own head for the first time in his life. 

“Mere human like the rest of us then. Wait, you survived the crash. How?”

Kylo shakes his head. “I don’t know.” 

“Okay. Fine. You can stay here for the moment, work with me, and we can try to get enough credits to get you off-planet, and that I can afford an agri-droid. Deal?”

Kylo nods. “I’m grateful.”

Hux’s eyes narrow. “This isn’t charity. This is both of us working towards a goal, like we used to.”

He looks outside. “The rain has stopped. You can start to earn your keep now.”

Hux has a tiny glasshouse, with trays of little seedlings. He pushes a few trays into Kylo’s hands.

When they reach the ploughed area, Hux demonstrates planting. Kylo carefully holds the tiny plants in his large hands, places them gently in the soil, covers their roots up, pats it down. It’s mindless work, but time passes quickly. The sun is low when they finish.

“I’m starving.” Kylo announces.

Hux looks over the planted area. “We’ve done that much faster than I thought we would. That’s good. I think we deserve a good dinner.” 

Hux cooks two bantha steaks, some potatoes and a vegetable Kylo’s never had before. 

“We should go to the baths before it gets too busy.”

“Busy?”

“The entire village uses those baths. I told you, it’s a community thing, everyone is equal in the water.” 

Kylo’s got a sudden wave of anxiety, his food turning to lead in his belly. “I’m anxious about being around other people. What if they recognise me?” 

“No one knows your face. Even if they did, they'd expect the helmet, the scarring, the entire ‘Supreme Leader’ bantha-shit. Not this. I’ve managed to escape detection. These people don’t pay much attention to galactic events, it’s one of the reasons I chose it.” 

“Okay.”

The bath house is busy, but one of the smaller baths is empty. They shower, and fill the bath. Kylo pulls his legs up to his chest, tries to make his body as small as possible. Hux stretches out his leg above the water, and Kylo spots a mass of scar tissue on his thigh. He looks away quickly before Hux notices. 

Hux moans as he sinks fully into the water. “My leg is so tight tonight.”

Kylo ignores the moan, resists offering to help Hux stretch. Their brand new, tentative working relationship did _not_ need Kylo’s dick interfering in the process. 

This is a test by the Force. It must be. If he can resist Hux, treat him well, the way he never did- maybe the Force will give his powers back. He ignores the dark, gnawing feeling that his powers died when he did. That Rey took them away from him, that their combined powers is what allowed her to defeat Palpatine. 

“Hi Armitage!” a woman calls as she heads to the showers. He waves at her, splashing Kylo slightly.

“I forgot that was your name.”

“Hux is dead. If I could remember my mother’s name, I’d take it instead.”

Kylo nods. “I guess I’m Ben again? I’m not sure who I am anymore. Not since I died.”

“You died?”

“The scavenger.”

Hux smirks. “I knew she was more powerful than you.”

Kylo glares but there’s no heat in it. He’ll never admit it out loud, but Hux is right. He’s had time to come to terms with it.

“I suppose I’m just Kylo then. Back to the start.” 

Hux grins, reaches out one wet hand. “Hi Kylo, I’m Armitage.”

Kylo shakes the hand. “Hi Armitage.” The name feels weird in his mouth. “Nice to meet you.”

It’s not quite a truce, but it’s a start.

\---

**Imbolc (the beginning of spring)**

Months pass and the weather improves. The winter vegetables swell and grow, and they pluck them with frozen fingers, sell them to buy new seeds to plant.

Hux thaws as the winter does, starts to trust Kylo with his crop breeding projects. They check seeds together, knees almost touching at Hux’s little table by the fire. Kylo learns the difference between crops and to spot the little blemishes from spores that could cost them the next harvest if they plant it. 

Kylo learns how to thresh seed, to break the pods or ears open to reveal the grain. To use his breath to gently blow the chaff from the seed. It’s delicate work, and he learns to be so, so careful. Hux is pleased with his progress, compliments him on his work and Kylo feels like for once, he has a place in the world. He has a purpose. 

Snoke used to tell him Kylo’s purpose was to rule, to take over the galaxy. Maybe his purpose was to be here with Hux, to grow plants, to feed people. To contribute instead of taking. 

They buy Kylo a mattress for the other room upstairs, and he decorates the space with dried flowers and herbs. Sometimes Millicent sleeps next to him, flicking him with her tail. 

Leera invites them both to her New Year party. It’s the first time Kylo’s been invited to a village event and he traces his name on the flimsi invite that Leera pressed into his hands with a wink. 

Hux comes downstairs, yawning. He stretches his arms up, and a silver of pale belly is revealed. Kylo quickly looks away. 

“Who was at the door?” he asks Kylo.

“Leera. We’ve been invited to her party tonight.”

Hux snorts. “You’ll need a haircut first. It’s tradition to have your hair down.”

Kylo scowls, hand instinctively cupping the wild bun on his head. “My hair’s fine.”

“It’s one egg away from a bird’s nest! Spring cleaning is customary at this time, you buy new clothing, cut your hair, throw out the old year.” 

“Fine.” Kylo picks the scissors from the table, pulls out a wide length of his hair and chops it straight across. He looks at the slanted piece of hair. Well, straight-ish. 

Hux rolls his eyes. “I would have cut it for you.”

“Oh.”

“Sit down.”

Hux carelessly touches Kylo sometimes, his hand on Kylo’s arm when he showed him how to shell peas, or a gentle brush of fingers on Kylo’s head when he was worried Kylo had a fever.

Hux puts both hands on Kylo’s shoulders and sits him down. It’s a little cold in the house this morning, they haven’t built the fire up yet, and he can feel the heat of Hux’s hands through Kylo’s light shirt. 

Kylo really likes Hux’s hands, whether they’re making bread, or delicately taking pollen from one plant to bring to the next in his glasshouse. They’re graceful, long fingered, and strong. 

But those same hands now are butchering his hair, he’s sure of it. 

“Don’t take too much off.”

“I’m trying to fix what you just did. Make it even.”

Kylo watches as another long piece of hair falls to the ground. Millicent bats at it. 

“I don’t want to look like him.”

Hux stops cutting. “Him?”

“Ben. Before I came here, I could see his face in the mirror on my shuttle. Weakness.”

Hux pats Kylo’s shoulder. “No one would mistake you for Ben anymore. When I look at your body every night, it’s strong again.” 

Kylo freezes. Surely Hux doesn’t mean...

Hux coughs. “I mean, I glimpse it. I don’t go looking.”

Hux makes quick work of Kylo’s hair. 

When Kylo smiles at the mirror, it’s Kylo Ren smiling back at him. Ben is dead.

\---

Hux has been to Leera’s many times for trade chats and caf, a few times for parties, but he’s never seen so many people there at once. He squeezes Kylo’s arm reassuringly. 

“It’ll be okay.” he murmurs, sneaking a glance at Kylo. His hair is down, brushed until smooth and shiny, and he’s wearing a long black tunic. He looks like the Kylo that Hux used to dream about, once upon a time in his own quarters on the Finalizer. But that was another lifetime ago.

Leera greets them both with crowns woven from the rushes that grew alongside the village’s river. Everyone seems to be wearing them, so Kylo puts his on his head. 

A few villagers talk to Hux, but Kylo sticks by his side. Kylo’s commanded legions, and he’s scared of a party? He’d laugh at himself if he wasn’t biting back terror every time a new person approached them. There’s bottles of wine and spirits in the kitchen, but no one has opened them. He’d really appreciate a drink right now. And there’s so much food laid out, and no one’s eating! This is the worst party he’s ever been to. He sips his water sullenly until they’re alone again.

“I want to go home. This isn’t a party.” Kylo mutters.

“The party hasn’t started yet. We’re waiting for the goddess Brigid to come and bless us. When that happens, seeds can start growing and new life will bloom.” He grins. “And best of all, we can get drunk.”

At midnight everyone gathers at the closed door. Outside, someone knocks loudly three times on the wood. A man reaches forward and opens the door and Leera comes in with an elaborate rush crown and a long cloak trailing behind her. Everyone cheers and then the entire mood of the party shifts from polite chatting to celebration in a heartbeat. People pass Kylo little flutes of alcohol, small bowls of food and he gratefully accepts everything.

Two people start to play the fiddle and a small group of people start to dance. 

Hux has that same, unguarded expression watching the dancers that Kylo sees in the bath every night. He’d never seen even a hint of that expression on General Hux’s face, but Armitage suits it. He grins at Kylo when he catches him watching him and Kylo flushes. 

Leera walks around the room talking to her guests. When she reaches Kylo and Hux she beams at them. “I’m so glad you both came!” 

Hux kisses her on the cheek. “Thank you for inviting us.”

Leera winks at him. “I notice you’re standing below the wand.”

“The wand?” Kylo asks.

Leera points up. There’s a white wand made of wood above their head. 

“It symbolises the wand Brigid used to start the vegetation growing again. It means you have to kiss the person you stand under it with.”

Hux stammers out “L-Leera-” and Leera puts one finger over his mouth.

“Hush. I’m not Leera tonight, I’m Brigid. And that’s what the wand represents!”

Hux turns to Kylo. “I’m sorry. It’s um, tradition.”

Kylo runs a hand through his hair nervously. “Of course.” 

Hux leans in, presses a kiss to Kylo’s mouth. It’s a chaste kiss, a simple touch of lips until he opens his mouth and Kylo can’t help but do the same. Hux’s fingers seeks Kylo’s hand out and Kylo squeezes them tightly. 

When they pull away Hux is flushed, eyes bright and wide. His crown of rushes is sideways on his head and Kylo straightens it. 

Hux doesn’t let go of his hand.

\---

**Beltane (the beginning of summer)**

After that kiss nothing really changes, yet everything does. They touch each other a little more often, and now they hug.

Hux had forgotten what hugging was like. Everytime Kylo wraps his arms around Hux, Hux feels like the entire world vanishes. That there’s nothing but this warm embrace. Sometimes Kylo laughs when they hug and Hux can feel the rumble of it against his own chest. 

They never discuss it, of course. But it happens every day. 

The season changes. Every plant around grows larger. They harvest some of the vegetables, freeze them, or sell them and plant new things in their place. 

The traditional bonfires to start the summer season are lit, the bantha are herded back out to paddocks. The larger field behind Hux’s house bursts into blue and yellow flowers with the occasional splash of pink scattered amongst them. 

Hux grimaces at them from the kitchen window. He’d spent a long time removing the pink flowers last year, there shouldn’t have been any in this crop. The pink ones tasted weird. He’d have to get rid of those pink plants today, before the petals fell and the grain set. Once the flower heads turned to grain there was no way to distinguish the tasty grains from the bad. 

Kylo’s out the front, digging a trench for the new watering system Hux had made. He’s taken his shirt off, and Hux keeps his eyes on Kylo’s face, ignoring how he mops at his brow, arms flexing.

He brings Kylo out to the crop, explaining they need to remove the pink ones. Kylo nods and helpfully pulls at the plant, and the floret snaps, leaving him with a handful of pink petals.

“Like this.” Hux says, and puts his hand over Kylo’s, slowly moving his hand to tug the plant from the base, near to the soil and the plant pops out of the ground. Kylo’s hand is warm under his, and Hux should move away, instead he takes another plant out using their joined hand. Kylo smells clean, like fresh sweat, something underneath that uniquely Kylo.

Hux lets go of Kylo’s hand and clears his throat. “We’ll dump the plants in the compost heap.” 

He flees to the other end of the field. It’s been _months_ . He’s been naked in a bath with Kylo every night for months, hugging daily for weeks but Kylo takes his shirt off in the field _one time_ , and Hux what, loses his mind? A hand touch and he’s swooning? He scoffs, tugging another pink plant up angrily. 

He’d been through much to let this _thing_ he had for Kylo get in the way of his life here. After this harvest they’d have enough credits to get Kylo off world, and Hux could finally get the agri-droid he needed. 

_To replace Kylo_ his mind whispers. Hux yanks the next plant out with such force he falls over. He sits on the ground, aware he’s crushing his crop.

“Kriffing _feelings_!” he says to the plants. 

\---

Hux shouts at his plants a few more times that week. There had been heavy rain after planting one particular area and the seed washed down the gentle slope. All mixed together is useless, he can’t sell this seed if he can’t tell them apart. He swears at them, kicks their stupid green heads. 

Kylo finds him sitting in the middle of them, muttering curses. 

“I think you’ve had enough sun for today.”

Hux glares up at him, bares his teeth. Kylo doesn’t flinch. “You look like Millie when you try to clip her nails. Come inside.” 

He takes Kylo’s hand and Kylo hauls him up, wraps Hux into a hug. “Dinner’s ready.”

Hux feels he needs to talk about his feelings about Kylo, but is scared to tell anyone. He’s getting to the point of no return- he feels he’s going to go mad, or cry everytime Kylo touches him.

Or both. Probably both.

Kylo’s become a partner in a way Hux never realised was possible. They work together, eat together, and sometimes play cards together. They don’t discuss the past. And sometimes, when he’s alone in his bed, Hux wonders if they can have a future, together. 

\---

(Note from author: minor injury at the beginning and MAJOR in the middle. But it’s a happy ending, so don’t worry too much!)

**Lughnasadh (the beginning of the harvest season)**

Harvest season begins. They planted more than they thought they’d be able to harvest, assuming some would be lost from poor seed, or insects. Instead, everything has grown wonderfully, and the heads of the plants bow low with deep yellow grain. 

Hux’s leg aches with the extra labour of moving vegetables, of walking fields to check the ripeness of the grain. Every night he sleeps fitfully because of it. It’s one morning after he tries to put salt in his caf instead of sugar Kylo makes a suggestion.

“I think we should get that agri-droid.” 

Hux shakes his head, picks up the sugar instead. “The prices are high right now. We need to buy it after harvest. If we buy one now you’ll be stuck here for another year.”

Kylo shrugs. “Would that be so bad?”

Hux stirs his caf. “Would you be okay with that?” He hopes he sounds nonchalant when his heart is actually beating so fast he’s sure Kylo can hear it. Millie looks up at him and he looks away from her gaze. She’s judging him. 

Kylo grins. “I’d like it. The simple life suits me too it seems.” 

Hux grins, takes a sip of his drink. With a droid they’ll harvest quickly, get premium prices for their grain _and_ he selfishly gets to keep Kylo for another year 

“How did you afford a house?”

“I left the _Supremacy_ with only three things, Millicent, a shuttle and a bag of credits. I traded the credits and shuttle for this house. It was a mess when I took it on, but it’s home now.” 

“I thought if we get enough for the grain I could rent a place.”

“Why?” Hux says in confusion.

Kylo looks down at the table. “I thought you’d be sick of me at this stage.”

“It’s been eight months. If I haven’t killed you by now, I think you’re safe.” 

Kylo grins at him and Hux feels his heart skip a beat. He should tell Kylo to move out. He should stop spending every waking moment with him. They should stop hugging. 

He says nothing. He’s allowed to have this one thing for himself. 

\---

The agri-droid is brand new, but one of the harvesting arms is broken so they get it reduced and Hux trades in some seeds for tools to fix it. 

He hopes they can fix it before the harvest begins in earnest. Kylo turns out to be surprisingly competent at the mechanical parts, carefully stripping the broken arm down while Hux tests the hydraulics on the legs.

“I used to work on things with my dad. Tinkering. Y’know, before.” Kylo offers one evening. He rarely talks about his past. He doesn’t specify what ‘before’ is but Hux fills in the blanks. Before he became a Jedi. Before Snoke. Before the Order. 

Kylo hisses, pulls his hand back, there’s a deep cut across his fingers, blood dripping. Hux runs for the bacta. He holds Kylo’s hand and gently rubs it on. The bleeding stops, but there’s still a deep pink groove. They’re out of bacta though. 

Kylo shakes his hand a little. “It still stings.”

“We’ll pick up more bacta tomorrow. Let’s go have a bath.”

\---

Kylo hisses when his hand hits the hot water. He holds it above the water, cleans the rest of his body with one hand. 

“Can you wash my hair please?” Kylo turns around and Hux picks up the shampoo with shaky hands, pours some onto his palm.

The bath house is almost empty tonight, most people either still in their fields or at home getting ready for bed and Hux is grateful for it. He feels like anyone who would look at him now would see his feelings plain as day on his face as he reaches to touch Kylo’s hair.

He hadn’t touched Kylo’s hair since that haircut at the New Year. It’s grown long again, brushing his shoulders, the ends of it dipping into the bath water. 

Kylo lets out these little pleased noises as Hux’s fingers work and Hux wills his body to behave. 

Kylo dips his head to rinse it and turns around. He’s so close to Hux, his knee bumping into Hux’s thigh. Kylo’s gaze drops to Hux’s mouth and Hux could just lean forward-

The door to the bath house opens with bang. Daraghe waves at them both and Hux waves back. Hux groans and leans back in the bath. Kylo does the same on the other side, the moment broken.

\---

Kylo’s fixing the fencing when a man stops outside the house. 

“Does Hux live here?” he calls out to Kylo. 

“Who?” Kylo’s sure no one here knew that name.

“Hux. First Order General. I used to be a ‘trooper. I’m sure it’s him. Do you realise you’re living with a war criminal?”

Kylo shakes his head. “Nah, I think you must be mistaken.”

The man narrows his eyes. “I don’t think so. Watch yourself. He’s the most dangerous man in the galaxy.” 

Kylo bites back a grin. The man had no clue who was speaking to. 

“I’ll be careful.” he assures him.

\---

Kylo forgets about the man for the next week, busy focusing on taking in the grain. The droid harvests well, but Kylo still has to shovel the grain into their storage unit and it’s hard work. He sleeps deeply every night. 

He’s dozing in his room, with Millie on his lap, both of them waiting for Hux to return from the field when Hux wakes him. It’s dark outside now.

“I’m going to make dinner soon.” Hux says from Kylo’s bedroom door.

Kylo sits up, Millie runs to Hux to weave between his legs. 

There’s a bang downstairs. 

Hux pets Millie. “Was that the door?”

Kylo looks out his little bedroom window. “It sounded like it, but there’s no one there.”

He wanders downstairs, stretching as he descends the steps. 

It definitely sounded like the door opening. Perhaps the door swung open in the wind- Huh. Kylo’s brow wrinkles as he gets to the end of the stairs. The door is shut. 

He walks over to check it, it’s unlatched.

“Where’s Hux?” an unfamiliar voice calls out.

Kylo turns around and blinks. He must still be asleep. 

The man from earlier in the week, the ex-Stormtrooper, is in their house, and this time, he’s got a knife. 

Hux is coming down the stairs, so Kylo lunges at the man, but he side-steps Kylo’s desperate swipe, rushes towards Hux, knife raised and Hux jumps back with a shout. 

Kylo sees red, viciously punches the man in the kidney, uses his own weight to haul him back against the wall. The knife comes close to Kylo’s face and he hisses, smashes that arm against the wall, forcing the knife to fall.

The man manages to get free in the scuffle, and Kylo slams him to the ground, bounces the man’s head off the hard stone. The man lets out a shout, scrabbles to get to his feet and Kylo doesn’t let go. The man goes limp. 

Kylo stands and cracks his knuckles, then shuts the front door and turns to Hux.

Hux isn’t there. 

“Hux?”

There’s a leg sticking out from behind the couch and for one moment Kylo stares at it, unsure what he’s seeing. It looks like Hux’s, but it can’t be...

“Hux?”

The unseeing eyes that gaze up at the ceiling means Kylo’s fumbled check for a pulse is pointless and Kylo feels the entire universe tip upside down, spin around and he feels faint. 

“No no no _no_ , Hux, please wake up. Please. _Please_.”

He feels so heavy in Kylo’s arms and Kylo’s hands are shaking as he places one palm over the stab wound. It’s a tiny thing- dwarfed by his large palm, but it’s _killed Hux_. 

“Save him.” He whispers to the Force, presses down on the wound.

“Please. Save him. Help me.” He whispers to the spirits of his mother, his uncle, his grandfather, anyone who will listen.

“This man has saved me, given me a home. Save him.” He whispers to their little house, to the chair Hux always takes by the fire, to the pot Kylo helped fix. 

Nothing happens. Kylo presses harder, feels bile rise in his throat. Hux _can’t_ be dead. There was a time Kylo would be annoyed at Hux’s death: when they served together on the Finalizer, losing Hux would mean losing a prize piece in an intergalactic wide game of dejarik. Now, Kylo’s devastated, not because he will be alone once more, but because Hux didn’t deserve this. 

“...I should have died. Save him. Take me instead. _Please_.” Kylo starts to sob. 

Hux stirs in his arms, eyelashes flutter. He takes in a deep breath, coughs a little and Kylo lets out the breath he didn’t know he was holding.

Hux blinks up at him. “Wh-What’s happening?”

Kylo kisses him.

Hux sighs against his mouth. “About time.”

Kylo laughs, kisses him again and Hux kisses back and Kylo’s heart soars. 

He doesn’t know if the Force will leave him live, if the universe will take him in exchange for Hux, but for these few minutes, he can kiss Hux and worry about the future later. 

There’s a whip-crack noise outside of thunder, and then the heavy whoosh of rain comes just as they pull apart from the kiss. 

Hux’s lips are parted, and he’s flushed. He looks towards the window.

“My mother used to say the storms here meant fresh starts. New beginnings. The rain brings growth, the lightning burns down old trees... I didn’t think there was meant to be one today.”

Kylo watches the rain running in rivulets down the glass. He should fix their gutters tomorrow, if it would be dry. Hux suddenly flinches, gets up, goes to the door and flings it open.

Kylo gets up and follows him outside.

“What is it?”

Hux seems to be looking directly into the rain, the wind, and doesn't respond to Kylo’s question. Kylo speaks again, keeps his tone reassuring.

“We've taken the grain in, there's only some vegetables left, if they get pulled up by the storm we'll pickle them. Salt them. Freeze them. It's okay. Come back inside.”

Hux looks around at the vegetables as if surprised to see them and their leaves flailing in the sudden wind. Kylo reaches his hand out to Hux.

“It’s okay. Come back inside,” he repeats. 

Hux’s shoulders drop a little. He looks around once again, and the wind howls around them both. Kylo’s clothing is almost soaked through now and he’s wearing thicker fabric than Hux. Hux takes Kylo’s hand. 

The cracks of thunder seem closer now, more frequent. They run together into the house. The house is dark now the storm has knocked out the electricity. 

Hux shakes his head a little and laughs. “I'm sorry, I just had the _strangest_ feeling when I was unconscious. Like I had to go outside, witness the storm. Let it...talk to me?”

Kylo smiles. The Force is telling them that they are forgiven; that they are allowed a new start, despite their crimes, that they can burn down their pasts and let something new grow, together. 

He ignores Hux's 'unconscious' comment. He never wants to lie to Hux again but he has a feeling Hux might not take his sudden death and resurrection well. Kylo knows he didn’t take his own well. 

“We have our crops. We have each other. We’ll be okay.”

“We have each other.” Hux echoes, and reaches for Kylo. 

The thunder cracks right above the house and the room lights up almost immediately with lightning. Hux kisses Kylo then, face chilly and damp but his mouth is so warm. Kylo groans a little into the kiss, hands reaching for Hux's waist, his cold fingers sliding under the material to touch his skin. 

Hux shivers at the touch, then breaks the kiss to yank the shirt off over his head. Kylo does the same and suddenly they're peeling each other's wet clothing off, hands roaming, breathless kisses snatched in between each touch.

They feel their way upstairs by touch, the creaking of the steps familiar even without light to guide their way.

Hux's bed sheets smell like lavender and thyme when Kylo lets Hux press him onto the soft mattress. 

Hux shivers a little again, face and hands still chilly from the downpour, so Kylo tugs the sheets over them both, rubs Hux's back and arms until the shivering subsides.

Then Hux kisses him again and their bodies press together, rocking against each other. It's a maddingly, slow burn and Kylo could stay here forever, treasure every one of these seconds he gets to stay here in Hux's bed, with Hux above him. 

Hux leans over to the bedside table and pulls out a small vial. The oil inside is the same golden colour he uses for cooking but thicker and more viscous. 

“Please.” is the only word he says to Kylo.

Sheets discarded onto the floor, Kylo opens Hux up until he's gasping and pushing back on his fingers. Kylo moves so he's sitting with his back against the headboard, so he can watch Hux lower himself onto Kylo's dick. 

It's almost like watching it happen to another person, a dream somehow while waking until Hux finally seats himself with a groan and Kylo's aware of the blissful warm, tight clutch of Hux's body and he lets out a low moan.

Kylo gives a slow, experimental thrust of his hips, and Hux nods, so Kylo repeats it, a slow, long movement. He's afraid to hurt him.

He's never had sex like this before. Never _knew_ a partner the way he knows Hux now. Never wanted to give them pleasure before he took his own.

Kylo forgives the storm for disrupting the electricity supply, for robbing what little light Hux's lamp would show. If it'd show Hux's face, if he looked blissful, or if his eyelashes flutter if Kylo's hips snapped up a little too fast.

They're both panting, and Kylo leans forwards, captures Hux's mouth in a kiss, wraps a hand around his cock and Hux is groaning against Kylo's mouth as he spills into his hand, and Kylo comes hard a moment after, stars dancing in his vision.

They lie together in the darkness, sweat cooling on their bodies. Kylo would get up and get a washcloth to clean them both but he's tired. Happy. Content. Hux is curled around him, spooning Kylo and he honestly can't remember the last time his mind felt so calm. 

“I thought it could be like this between us once, when you first came on my ship.” Hux murmurs behind him, pressing his nose into Kylo's hair to drop a kiss on his nape. Kylo returns the kiss gesture to Hux's freckled forearm that's holding Kylo tight.

“I never thought this is how the war would end. I assumed I'd die in battle.” Hux's voice cracks. “Once, I even thought I might die by your hand.”

“I'm sorry.” Kylo says softly to the wall he's facing. He truly is sorry.

Hux drops another kiss. “I forgive you. Go to sleep.”

When Kylo wakes he's turned in his sleep and has one arm flung over Hux. Hux is as tall as him, but slender and fits under his arm perfectly. He snuffles a little, lets out a snore.

There's sunshine beaming in the window and everything Kylo can see outside looks fresh and green, renewed. Balance has been restored.

It's a new beginning. 

-fin


End file.
